PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - Tony Blignaut, the new chairperson of the Plettenberg Bay Ratepayers and Residents Association and a world-class clay pigeon shooter, has moved the Bitou Municipality into his sights.

Blignaut is a previous chairperson of the Crags Ratepayers Association and has strong links to Plett as owner of Monkeyand, as well as many years' experience in tourism.

He has taken up the hot seat after being head-hunted by the Ratepayers for the position.

He steps into the shoes of Steve Pattinson, who has left his mark on the Ratepayers' profile in Plettenberg Bay.

As the new chairperson, Blignaut believes his no-nonsense approach and management experience will benefit the town.

Heading up the Crags Ratepayers Asso-ciation some years back might have been a "rural endeavour", but he believes it gives him the necessary platform to confront the problems Bitou faces today.

Blignaut was born in Livingstone in the then Northern Rhodesia to a boertjie father and an English aristocratic mother, Lady Silvia Hilton-Borman, who met his father after she divorced and came to Rhodesia on holiday.

"My dad was a real Dutchman - Hendrik Stefanus Blignaut."

Nature lover

Blignaut came to South Africa when he was five years old and matriculated at Boksburg High School. Asked if he went to university, his instant response is: "No, I was too busy making money!"

As a devout nature lover and a man who loves monkeys, he led overland tourism tours into Africa and started and developed the Inyati Game Lodge in the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve.

It was during his guiding days that the idea of Monkeyland was born. Guests, while wanting to view one of nature's kills, often found it too gory - and they had a bigger affinity for monkeys.

Blignaut spent 10 years putting Inyati Game Lodge on the map and after selling it, he went to the USA to list sports teams on their stock exchange.

Before he left South Africa he provided his now soulmate Lara Mostert with the blueprint to create Monkeyland in his absence.

"When I returned back from the US, Lara was waiting for me at OR Tambo and handed the Monkeyland blueprint back to me. We then came to Plett in 1996 and built Monkeyland together," he said.

Today, Monkeyland is a must-see attrac-tion on Plett's tourism route, along with Birds of Eden and Jukani Wildlife Centre.

"I'm heading for retirement now, but I want to do as much as I can before that day arrives," said the 74-year-old Blignaut.

Watchdog

The Ratepayers is primarily a watchdog organisation which is driven by a constitution.

"But we can have teeth. Where we see wrongdoing in municipal affairs we can try and negotiate to stop it. If that fails, we can go to other measures," he said, without elaborating.

The team at Plett Ratepayers is "fantastic", including engineers who are "at the top of their game".

"I don't think there's anybody on the team who isn't worth their weight in gold," he said. "They're all volunteers who are trying to help the municipality for the betterment of those living in our wonderful town.

"We are not a threat [to the municipality] - we are only trying to help."

Development

The Ratepayers' priorities are water, sewerage, proper staffing at the munici-pality with skilled people, and 'runaway development' that puts pressure on the municipality's infrastructure.

"What might look positive now, might come back to bite us with development already at service capacity," he said.

"Yes, we do need development, but it must fit in with Plett's infrastructure development."

Other issues that could make the agenda during his tenure include the airport tender and make-up of the planning tribunal.

Blignaut will also be working towards attaining observer status for the Rate-payers at municipal selection committees conducting interviews for senior person-nel vacancies. "We have such vested interests. There are other observers allowed observer status like trade unions, so why not the Ratepayers?"

Sport

Blignaut said on the sporting side (he is ranked number two in the world in clay target shooting): "I've done well and I've always hoped to do well in whatever I do. I always like to hit my targets."

He said they aim to get Bitou fixed at any cost. "And I'll use anything at my disposal to achieve these goals."

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